Chapter 6: The Quidditch Game
"I'm not hungry." I moaned, slapping Hermione's hand away. She frowned, the boys gasping, and put the waffle back onto my plate. "That's not like you though. You always eat." protested Ron. I scowled at him and said, "I know that." He shrugged and went back to his own food, ignoring our conversation. I was about to bite Hermione's finger, which was trying to pry my mouth open, when I heard someone clear their throat. Turning around on the bench, I faced the person in front of me, who was in fact Snape.
"Good Luck today, Nixie. Then again, now that you've proven yourself against a Troll, a little game of Quidditch should be easy work for you...even if it's against Slytherin." sneered Snape. I looked blankly at him and was touched to see a look of worry in his eyes. "Why Thank you Sir." I said, giving him a fake smile. He looked at me for a few more seconds, before leaving us to talk again. He was limping...why?
"That explains the blood..." whispered Harry. I looked at him with puzzlement and shook my head, dismissing the confusing thoughts in my head. "Blood?" asked Hermione. "Listen, last night, I'm guessing Snape let the Troll in as a diversion so he could try and get past that three-headed dog. But, he got himself bitten, that's why he's limping." explained Harry, giving me an apologetic look. I listened intently, interested in what Harry had to say.
"But why would anyone go near that dog?" asked Hermione. Me and Ron shrugged. "The day I was at Gringotts, Hagrid took something out of one of the vaults. He said it was Hogwarts' bussiness, very secret." said Harry. "So you're saying..." "That that is what the dog is guarding. Gosh people, keep up!" I sighed, already bored. Before any of us could say anything else, an owl came screeching down. It was a black colour with golden flecks. "It's beautiful!" whispered a girl close to us. Whoever's owl this is, is lucky. It's wings glimmered in the sunlight, twinkling a little everytime it moved it's wings.
I was just about to bite into my bacon, when it was snatched out of my hands. "Hey!" I yelled, looking up. The owl, which held my precious bacon, hooted and dropped the Parcel. I caught it just in time, else it would have spilled my Hot Chocolate. Flying down onto my shoulder, the owl nipped at my ear. "Hello there..." I murmured. The owl looked at the Parcel and then at me, telling me to open it. I was just about to rip the brown paper off, when the owl nipped my ear again, harder than before.
"OW!" I said, giving it the death glare. Open it you Idiot! said an amused voice in my mind. Urm...Hello? Hello child. Okay....what the hell is going on? Am I going mad? Oh no, Mum will send me to a hospital, where they would do tests on me. Calm down child and open the letter. All will be revealed then.
Snatching the letter, I ripped it open and unfolded the piece of rectangle parchment. It read:
To Nixie
I thought It'd be best to get you a Broomstick, since you ddn't have one yet. If we want Gryffindor to win, we have to have a good seeker, which we already have. A good seeker also needs a good Broomsticks and I'm sorry to say, but the school ones are rubbish.
I bet you are also wondering about the owl that delivered your Broomstick and letter. He is called Galen and is your new owl. I hope you like him because you aren't getting another one.
Good Luck and I love you
Mum
"Mail is a little early today, isn't it?" asked Hermione, looking at my Mail. "It's not any mail. It's a broomstick!" exclaimed Ron, staring wide eyed at my parcel. I grinned and held my fingers up. Ron and Harry got ready, just like me, and waited for the signal. "3,2,1 GO!" I yelled, ripping at the parcel with the boys. Once we finished ripping the paper off, we backed away and looked at it with awe. "It's a Nimbus 2000! It's supposed to be the best broomstick around." said Ron excitedly. I jumped with excitement and stroked my new broom, admiring it.
"It's beautiful!" I gasped. Okay...so maybe I'm a little extreme when it came to Broomsticks and Quidditch. I just liked the idea of flying around and hitting people with self-controlled balls; especially if they deserved it. "Nixie, it's time to go. Is that a Nimbus 2000? We are bound to win!" exclaimed Oliver happily, slapping me on the back. I smirked and followed Oliver, waving at my still-eating friends.
(Just before the game)
We were lined up in front of a door, which was supposed to open in a couple of minutes. "Scared, Nixie?" asked Oliver. "No. Okay maybe a teensy tiny tibbly bit." I said quickly, thinking about all of the possible injuries me and the team could get. "That's alright. I felt the same way before my first game." said Oliver, his expression distant. I smiled, feeling a little less scared and asked, "What happened?" Oliver shrugged and frowned. "Er, I don't really remember. I took a bludger to the head 2 minutes in. Woke up in hospital a week later." he told me.
I grimaced, my worry increasing massively. Gulping, I looked in front of me, trying to stop mind from exploding with nerves. The doors started opening, revealing a field surrounded by screaming students and excited looking Teachers.
"HELLO and welcome to Hogwarts' first Quidditch game of the season! Today's game Slytherin versus Gryffindor!" shouted Lee through the Microphone. The Gryffindor supporters screamed and cheered, whilst the Slytherins boo'ed. "Gryffindor!" I heard Neville shout. Smiling, I mounted my broom and flew after Oliver. We took our positions in the air, forming a circle. I rose a little higher and looked down at everyone else, observing the Slytherin players.
"The players take their positions as Madam Hooch steps out onto the field to begin the game." commented Lee. "Now, I want a nice clean game...from all of you." said Madam Hooch, shooting looks at the Slytherins. She kicked the trunk filled with the Quidditch balls in it and watched as the Bludgers zoomed out. I just hoped it wouldn't attack us straight away, else I'd be screwed.
"The Bludgers are up...followed by the Golden Snitch. Remember, the Snitch is worth 150 points. The Seeker who catches the Snitch ends the game." I saw the Snitch fly around the silver and green cloaked Seeker, before it disappeared again. Madam Hooch grabbed the Quaffle and threw it up into the air. "The Quaffle is released...and the game begins!" shouted Lee.
Gryffindor took possession of the ball straight away, much to my relief. Angelina Johnson, who was one of our chasers, zoomed past the Slytherins and towards the goal, throwing the ball. There was a ding noise, before Lee spoke again. We had 10 points already! I balanced myself on my broom and clapped, still floating in the air. "Yes!" I shouted. Just then, I felt something go past me and heard a zoom. "WOAH!" I checked the air around me and saw it was clear. Gryffindor's cheers filled the air, Hagrid's shouts being the loudest.
I was brought out of my cheering by Lee's next comment. "Slytherin takes possession of the Quaffle. Bletchley passes to Captain Marcus Flint." I followed Marcus' figure and saw that he was close to the hoops. He dodged our players and threw it at our hoops. At the last second, Oliver zoomed in and whacked the ball away with his broom, smirking at Flint, who was glaring at him. I saw Flint talk to some of his players, sneering at Oliver.
Ding! Another 10 points! The whole game got a bit more vicious once the Slytherins decided to get messy. They dodged and kicked us, before trying to score again. Once again, Oliver blocked the ball. "WOOO-- Hey you asshat!! That's cheating! FOUL FOUL!!!!!" I screamed, catching Madam Hooch's attention. Oliver, who got hit by a bludger sent from Flint, fell to the floor and landed on the ground. Wincing, I followed the crowd's lead and boo'ed and cursed the Slytherins, who were laughing and cheering. Those Pigs!
Oh crap! The Slytherin members headed off, jumping over one of the Twins and scoring. "NO!" I yelled frustratedly. The Slytherin cheered, jumping up and down. I saw Flint say something to the members close to him, before flying up to Angelina. They boxed her in, making her panic. Growling, I flew towards them, still looking out for any bludgers and the snitch. Angelina was out of control and flew into the capes covering one of the Towers. She fell down to the ground and was unconscious, whilst the crowd complained. Slytherin scored again, meaning that we were in a tie.
I was just about to hit Flint and his friend, when I saw the Snitch. If I get this, I will win for Gryffindor. I flew after it when suddenly, my broom started playing up. "AAHH!" I shouted. What the hell is going on? My broom started knocking me around. I tried to hold on as tight as possible as it threw me around, nearly making me fly over it. A sudden strong jolt knocked me off, I thought this broom was supposed to be the best?! I grabbed onto my broom and hung on, praying for my life. The crowd gasped, whilst the Slytherins laughed and cheered. Such Bitter people...Maybe I'll slip some happy pills in their drinks. If I get out alive! I stole a look at the playing field around me and was relived to see that the Team was still playing. Fred and George shot me occasional worried looks, along with the other Gryffindors, but that's it.
As fast as it started, the broom stopped throwing me around. I quickly swung myself on my broom again and focused on finding the Snitch. This game has gone on for too long, I really needed to find it. I looked around the playing field and saw the Slytherin Seeker zoom after the Snitch. Quickly catching up to the Seeker, thanks to my broom, I rammed into him. He flew to the side and smashed back into me. "Dick!" I growled. The Snitch changed its course and flew towards the ground, making us follow it.
We neared the ground, both looking at eachother. Suddenly, the Slytherin Seeker backed out and pulled up. Seconds later I did the same, flying just above the ground. If I stretched my leg, I would be able to reach the ground. All I focused on was the Snitch, not caring about anything else. I had to get it, for the team. Without thinking, I stood up on my broom, balancing myself, and stepped forward so I could grab the Snitch. I went a little too far and toppled off the broom with a yelp, tumbling to the ground. Landing with my knees on the ground, I stood up and gagged.
Something was moving in my mouth, it made me feel sick. The crowd gasped and stood up, trying to catch a glimpse of me. "Looks like she's gonna be sick!" shouted Hagrid. Just then, I bent over and put my hand over my mouth, catching what was in my mouth. I looked at it and saw it was the Snitch. Holding it up triumphantly, I enjoyed the cheering and the face of the losing Slytherins. Sore losers.
"Well done Nixie!" Shouted two familiar voices. "Thanks guys." I said to the Twins. "Nixie! That was great!" Shouted Ron, followed by Harry and Hermione. I grinned at them and gave all of them a hug, including Fred and George. Other Gryffindors were running towards us, desperately trying to be the one to hug the team first. "Nixie! Nixie! Nixie!" They chanted. They lifted me up and continued to chant, whilst I was waving my hands around like those men in orchestras.
When we got into the common room, we saw food, drinks, a banner and some streamers. Someone turned the music on and soon, everyone was dancing. I messed around with the Twins, putting different potions in certain foods. Just as I was about to go back on the dance floor, I saw Harry leaving. I ran over to him and grabbed his arm, catching his attention. "Where you going Harry? The party is here, unless you are going to see somebody." I sad with a mischievous smirk. He smiled weakly and shook his head, before saying, "Nah. I'm just not a party person. I'm only going out for some fresh air." I nodded and let him go, watching his shrinking figure down the hallway.
The party overall lasted until the early morning, but was interrupted by Mum. Just my luck to have a party pooper as a parent. "Go to bed!" She shouted, before telling an angry Percy off. I almost felt bad for him, but thought differently once I remembered him telling Snape about my pranks. It cost me 20 detentions and a night of ranting from my mum. Groaning, I went up to the girl's dormitories, shouting a goodnight to Harry, Ron, Hermione, Fred and George, and flung myself into bed. I was too lazy to get dressed, so I waved my wand and saw my Pajamas appearing. A hoot at the window interrupted my dozing off, making me look up. There, stood on the windowsill in front of my window, was Galen.
He watched me for a few seconds before hooting again. Sighing, I got up again and made my way over to the window. "Hello Galen." I whispered to the black and golden owl. He greeted me with a hello (inside my head), and nibbled on my finger. "How has your day been?" I asked. Not as good as yours I've heard.
Chuckling, I stepped back and waited for Galen to come in. I won't stay my child. You are half asleep already, and we don't need anymore bags under our eyes tomorrow, do we? I nodded, smiling at him. Galen hooted and got ready to fly away. Goodnight child. I will see you tomorrow. "Goodbye Galen. I'll try to visit soon." I whispered back.
After Galen left, I went back to my bed and lay down, slowly closing my eyes. Falling asleep was quite easy, but keeping the nightmares out wasn't.